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Koulounisation
Salim Djaferi
Information
Presented in French with English surtitles
Times: 7:30pm
Tickets: Pay What You Can (Recommended Price £14)*
*all orders subject to a transaction fee of £2
Running Time: 70 minutes (no interval)
Age Recommendation: 12+
This event takes place in person in our Council Chamber
Co-presented by Battersea Arts Centre and Shubbak Festival
A bold evening of storytelling where language sparks revolution.
In a witty performance lecture, French Algerian artist Salim Djaferi invites you on an investigation that explores the essence of colonialism.
Reflecting on his own heritage as well as collective trauma with sensitivity and humour, Koulounisation unravels the thorny story of the French occupation of Algeria using interviews, visuals and conversation to interrogate the way in which history is told as a question of perspective.
‘Salim Djaferi delivers a masterful performance, with humour matched only by its intelligence.’ Le Soir
‘As funny as it is captivating and dynamic’ Libération
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Shubbak Festival
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Shubbak Festival (meaning ‘window’ in Arabic) is Europe’s largest biennial celebration of contemporary Arab and SWANA (South West Asian & North African) arts and culture.
Taking place from 23 May to 15 June 2025, the festival showcases bold, innovative, and culturally authentic works across visual arts, film, music, theatre, dance, literature, and debates, connecting audiences in London, across the UK, and beyond.
Biographies
Salim Djaferi
Trained at ESACT in Liège, Salim Djaferi is an actor, writer, and director. He lives and works in Brussels. Alongisde the collective Vlard he presented Almanach at the 2017 Emulation Festival at the Théâtre de Liège. He has also previoulsy collaborated with Sanja Mitrovic (Do You Still Love Me?, 2015) and Elena Dorassiotto and Benoît Piret (Des Caravelles et des Batailles, 2019); and with Adeline Rosenstein and Clément Papachristou. Following the installation/performance Sajada/Le lien (2019), Salim Djaferi created his first theater production, Koulounisation, in 2021 at Les Halles de Schaerbeek in Brussels Piret (Des Caravelles et des Batailles, 2019).
Delphine De Baere
Delphine De Baere graduated from ESACT (Royal Conservatory of Liège) in 2014. Upon graduating, Delphine founded the collective Vlard. They have performed in multiple productions including Histoire de la folie à l’âge classique de Michel Foucault – Le nerf du crapaud by Angélica Liddell (Italy, Portugal, France, Belgium); Anti-université, a collective project initiated by Adeline Rosenstein and more. She directed and performed in her first show, COWBOY, at the Festival Factory in February 2020 (Festival Supernova Toulouse, Festival WET CDN de Tours, Halles de Schaerbeek). Delphine is also an actress in various film projects, such as Amours by Delphine Noels and Mourir gracieusement by Joseph Paris.
Laurie Fouvet
It was while watching a David Bowie concert that Laurie chose her tool, her medium, her craft: light. A graduate of the 3is Paris program specializing in live performance techniques, she draws inspiration today from Caravaggesque paintings, classical ballets, live performances, and has developed a strong passion for lighting in music videos that garner millions of views. She has been collaborating as a lighting artist for 10 years with various artists and performers, including choreographer Christian Ubl, the Balleperdue Collective, and Jenny Abouav.
Cyriel Lucas
Cyriel Lucas was born in Brussels in the mid-90s to a working-class family. At the age of eleven, he began taking theatre classes at the Eghezée Academy after participating in summer workshops organised by Arts Scène et Compagnie. He has trained at IAD (Institut des Arts de Diffusion – Louvain-la-Neuve); at École de Théâtre Physique de Strasbourg, where he worked with Peeping Tom Company, and at INSAS (Institut national Supérieur des Arts du Spectacle – Brussels), where he obtained his first master’s degree as an actor in 2020. His practice focuses on interdisciplinary dance theatre.
Credits
Co-presented by Battersea Arts Centre and Shubbak Festival
A production by Salim Djaferi, co-produced by Les Halles de Schaerbeek, Le Rideau de Bruxelles et l’Ancre – Théâtre Royal de Charleroi, with the support of writing grants, Claude Etienne of the SACD, La Chaufferie-Acte1, La Bellone-Maison du Spectacle (BXL/BE), Théâtre des Doms, Théâtre Episcène and Zoo Théâtre. With the help of the Fédération Wallonie Bruxelles.
Creation and Performance Salim Djaferi
Stage Composition Delphine de Baere
Artistic Collaborator Clément Papachristou
Dramaturgic Advisor Adeline Rosenstein
Writing Support Marie Allié and Nourredine Ezzaraf
Scenography Justine Bougero and Silvio Palomo
Lighting Design Laurie Fouvet
Stage Control Laurie Fouvet and Cyriel Lucas
Development, Production and Distribution Habemus papam – Cora-Line Lefevre, Rosine Louviaux, Alix Maraval, and Apolline Paquet
Special thanks to Aristide Bianchi, Camille Louis, Kristof van Hoorde and Yan-Gael Amghar.
Salim Djaferi’s work is registered by Habemus Papam.
Access
PRE EVENT INFORMATION
This event takes place in person in our Council Chamber. This space is on the first floor, with step-free access via a lift.
If you have booked a ticket you will receive an email from us before your performance detailing important information about your visit.
PERSONAL ASSISTANT/COMPANION TICKETS
If you require the assistance of a friend or helper to attend, we can make a free ticket available for your companion. You can book access companion tickets online or contact the Box Office to book by emailing access@bac.org.uk.
To book a free access companion online:
- log in to your account here
- go to ‘Other preferences’ and tick ‘I require a personal assistant/companion’.
- Choose the performance, date and seats you would like and if you add at least 2 tickets to your basket, then one of these will automatically become free.
PERFORMANCE INFORMATION
Content
- Sudden and loud noises
- Fake blood
- Simulated violence
All performances will be Relaxed. We invite you to make yourself comfortable and move around if you need to and if you need to leave the performance at any point you will be allowed to return to the space when you feel ready.
We want our shows to be as accessible to as many people as possible.
We offer tickets to most shows on a Pay What You Can basis throughout the year.
Tickets for performances in 2025 start at £9.50, and we have recommended pricing to help you choose a price that works for you.
We know that ticket price is a huge barrier for some. If you can afford to pay the recommended price or more, choosing to do so supports those that can’t. It makes it possible for us to continue to offer Pay What You Can and welcome those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to attend.
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